Riverhead, Southold to Remain in Same A.D.

The New York State Legislature has signed off on new assembly district lines that will keep Riverhead and Southold together as local politicians and voters had expressed, according to Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele.

An earlier iteration of the plan would have all of Southold Town and Shelter Island in the South Fork's district. But Southold officials opposed sharing an assemblyman with the South Fork - and Riverhead officials expressed concern at being separated from its North Fork neighbor to the east, worrying that North Fork interests would not be adequately represented in Albany.

The state task force that drafted the new districts maps in response to the criticism, leaving each fork with its own representative. Shelter Island will switch from representation with the North Fork to joining the South Fork's district.

Thiele, I-Sag Harbor, currently represents the Second Assembly District but — if he secures re-election in November — will represent the new First Assembly District, come 2013.

North Fork Assemblyman Dan Losquadro, R-Shoreham, had stated that despite changes in the districts that will keep Riverhead and Southold together, he planned on voting against the plan because the two never should have been separated in the first place.

To a larger point, Losquadro called the redistricting process hidden from public view and supported a constitutional amendment to change redistricting - which Gov. Andrew Cuomo did indeed sign on Thursday, to the dismay of many who called the redistricting plan a favor for other political deals.

"It was disappointing that this year's process was not the product of such an independent process," Thiele is quoted as saying in a statement from his office. "However, the proposed constitutional amendment, if ultimately approved by the voters, will insure that all future redistricting plans are prepared by an independent, nonpartisan commission."